Understanding Dhammakāya in Relation to Paccekabuddhas and Enlightenment : หน้า 67/141

early texts that 'dhammakāya' must be singular. 100 In any case, the verse conveys the meaning that a Paccekabuddha has dhamma(s) as his body (or bodies), where 'dhammas' refers to the qualities pertaining to self-enlightenment. Here again, we note the connection between the term dhammakāya and enlightenment. The adjectival (bahu) dhammakāya in the case of Paccekabuddhas is comparable to that in the case of the Buddha's designation. We noted earlier that scholars tend to interpret the component 'dhamma' as 'teaching.' However, this does not fit the adjective '(bahu)dhammakāya' referring to Paccekabuddhas, for Paccekabuddhas do not need a teacher and they themselves are not 'teachers.' They are 'enlightened beings.' This then reinforces the notion that the term dhamma in the adjective 'dhammakāya' corresponds to enlightenment,' i.e., transcendental dhamma(s). It may be argued that the Buddha and Paccekabuddhas are not the same. As the Buddha is a teacher, then it should be fine to say that he 'has teaching as body.' This is unlikely, however, for it would be strange to differentiate that the component 'dhamma' of the adjectival dhammakāya refers to 'teaching' in the case of Buddha, while referring to 'transcendental dhamma' in the case of Paccekabuddhas. Such would give an impression that a Buddha is a 'non-enlightened being,' which is incorrect. The study of this passage thus reinforces our earlier conclusion regarding dhammakāya and the Buddha that the component dhamma in the adjective dhammakāya does not refer to 'teaching,' but 'transcendental dhamma' relating to spiritual realization. In conclusion, our study in this part adds further information that dhammakāya is related not only to the Buddha but also to the enlightenment of Paccekabuddhas. We shall now proceed to examine further the meaning of dhammakāya in relation to noble disciples. 100 As Harrison states, the understanding that dhammakāya must be singular is 'later traditional belief' that links 'dhammakāya' with other words for reality such as dhammas, dhammaṭā, dhammaḍhātu, etc. Harrison, op. cit., pp. 44, 48. As observed above, 'dhammakāya' may be identified with any transcendental path, fruit, or Nibbāna. This seems to allow the possibility of different levels of dhammakāya. The study of dhammakāya and noble disciples below will affirm this point.